Facebook and Twitter back Apple in phone encryption battle with FBI

Facebook and Twitter stepped into the battle with the FBI, with both companies pledging that they “stand with Apple” and will “aggressively fight” attempts to weaken encryption.

Apple is heading deeper in to a legal battle with the FBI, which is attempting to access encrypted information on an iPhone used by one of the San Bernardino killers.

“We condemn terrorism and have total solidarity with victims of terror. Those who seek to praise, promote, or plan terrorist acts have no place on our services,” Facebook said in a statement Thursday.

“However, we will continue to fight aggressively against requirements for companies to weaken the security of their systems. These demands would create a chilling precedent and obstruct companies’ efforts to secure their products.”

The support of both companies follows remarkable public statements by Silicon valley figures including Sundar Pichai, CEO of Apple’s biggest rival Google, who wrote on Wednesday that “requiring companies to enable hacking of customer devices & data … could be a troubling precedent”

Although technology companies generally are on the same page when it comes to surveillance, this latest episode may show the greatest amount of solidarity to date over a specific conflict with the government. (The Guardian)